Last week, a study confirmed (again) that New Mexico’s methane “hot spot” is largely tied to oil and gas pollution. Despite this clear connection, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it is putting a hold on the methane rule for two years. The EPA’s rule would have reduced methane emissions by reducing leaking, venting and flaring practices by the oil and gas industry. Now, the proposed hold on the rules is open for public comment and we need you to speak up for these important safeguards again.

New Mexicans are directly impacted by the Trump administration’s reckless action to allow the oil and gas industry to release methane into the air we breathe unchecked, which will impact our rural, indigenous, low-income and Latino communities significantly. Just last month, Congress rejected this type of special interest pandering with a bipartisan vote. The Trump administration has shown a dangerous disregard for the health and wellbeing of New Mexicans and this action takes it to a new low.

Methane is responsible for about a quarter of the climate change impacts New Mexicans like you and me are already experiencing – dangerous impacts like heat waves, extended drought and erratic wildfires. That’s because methane’s capacity to trap over 80 times as much heat as carbon over 20 years can have huge ramifications for our ability to avert the worst impacts of climate change. With national policies being rolled back, it will be up to New Mexico officials to address the state’s methane problem. The Trump administration seems determined to ignore the voices of the majority of New Mexicans like you who support common-sense rules to reduce methane waste, but it’s important that we show our state officials that we want our health protected from one of the region’s largest polluters. Submit your public comment to keep the EPA methane rule in place now.»